Skip to main content

Shelbyville, KY Road Trips

Plan drives from Shelbyville, KY with practical route pages for distance, drive time, fuel cost, road character, and places to stop along the way.

Downtown Shelbyville, KY, KY

Photo: Get Lost Mike

Trip Routes

1

Longest Drive

215.3 mi

Georgetown, KY

Quickest Drive

4h 14m

Georgetown, KY

Plan Around Shelbyville, KY

Popular Incoming Routes

Useful if Shelbyville, KY is the arrival point and you want the strongest routes into the city first.

Shelbyville, KY by the Numbers

Recent demographic snapshot from the US Census Bureau's American Community Survey.

Population

17,436

Median Income

$73,733

Median Home Value

$238,600

Median Age

36.8

Source: US Census Bureau ACS 5-year (public domain). See our methodology for details.

Shelbyville, KY at a Glance

Founded

1792

Elevation

761 ft

Area

8 mi²

Notable People from Shelbyville, KY

A sampling of people born in Shelbyville, KY.

Augustus Owsley Stanley

Augustus Owsley Stanley

1867–1958

American state and federal politician (1867-1958)

Q590709

Q590709

1987

American-Polish basketball player

Vernon Benjamin Mountcastle

1918–2015

American neuroscientist (1918–2015)

Thomas Theodore Crittenden

Thomas Theodore Crittenden

1832–1909

American politician (1832–1909)

Alice Hegan Rice

Alice Hegan Rice

1870–1942

American writer

Albert S. Willis

Albert S. Willis

1843–1897

American politician (1843–1897)

James Armstrong

James Armstrong

1794–1868

United States Navy officer 1794-1868

Lee Tinsley

Lee Tinsley

1969–2023

American baseball player and coach

Landmarks & Historic Sites

Attractions and heritage-registered places located in Shelbyville, KY.

Science Hill School

Science Hill School

listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Shelby County, Kentucky

National Register of Historic Places listed place

City data from Wikidata (Q2262385), available under CC0. Photos from Wikimedia Commons under their respective licenses. See our methodology for details.

Traveler Guide to Shelbyville, KY

Shelbyville is a city in the Kentucky Derby Region, 30 mi (48 km) east of Louisville and 20 mi (32 km) west of Frankfort. It is the county seat of Shelby County.

Shelbyville/Shelby County Tourism Commission & Visitors Bureau, 316 Main Street, ☏ +1 502 633-6388.

American Saddlebred Horse Farm Tours, 316 Main St., ☏ +1 502 633-6388. Monday-Saturday, by APPOINTMENT only. Visit an authentic American Saddlebred Horse Farm (show horses). Tours generally last about an hour and a half, you see a training session, mare & foal if available, horses in fields, and possibly the historic home. All tours are personalized to each visitor, with no group number requirement. There is no charge for the tour; however, a donation to the Luci Center (therapeutic riding center) is strongly suggested. Science Hill, 525 Washington St, ☏ +1 502 633-4382. The history of Science Hill nearly coincides with the history of its residence, the City of Shelbyville. Wakefield-Scearce Galleries was founded 150 years later. After 114 years of continuous operation, Science Hill graduated its last class in 1939. During its time, Science Hill School had established a reputation of greatness for its contribution to education and culture. the lives of those girls who graduated from the prestigious school have affected the development of every state of America. After the school's 1939 closing, most of the premises became a residential inn. Misses Juliet and Harriet Poynter, daughters of Dr. Wiley Poynter, retained only the most western portion, the original structure as a home. The Poynter daughters were born here in the late 1800s, and here they would die nearly 100 years later.

University of Louisville Golf Club, 401 Champions Way, Simpsonville (off of I-64 at Exit 28 (KY 1848/Veechdale Rd.)), ☏ +1 502 852-8542. The golf club built for the University of Louisville. Clear Creek Golf Course, 717 Burks Branch Rd, ☏ +1 502 633-0375. Clear Creek Golf Course is good for beginners and yet offers a challenge to the more advanced golfers. Most golfers have found that this is not just a "chip and putt" course, and are able to use all the clubs in their bag depending on conditions. Their courteous staff is always at your service. Special rates for Seniors are available weekdays and weekends.. The course is surrounded by some of Kentucky's best known antique shops and a number of well-known horse farms. Shelbyville Country Club, 47 Smithfield Rd, ☏ +1 502 633-2100. Formed in 1934, SCC offers members the best in country club services. This 6,400 yard golf course offers the most skillful, as well as the beginning golfer, a chance to test his/her skills as well as develop them. The signature "horseshoe" lake provides a challenge for the course, which lies in a serene setting in the rolling hills of Shelby County. This course places a true value on shot accuracy versus distance. With a limited membership, you can be assured of an enjoyable round of golf even during the busiest months of the year. Weissinger Hills Golf Course, 2240 Mount Eden Rd, ☏ +1 502 633-7332. Weissinger Hills Golf Course is an 18 hole golf course located off of I-64 on KY 53.

Bell House Restaurant, 721 Main St, ☏ +1 502 437-5678. Cattleman's Roadhouse, 221 Breighton Circle, +1 502 647-5959. Claudia Sanders Dinner House, 3202 Shelbyville Rd, ☏ +1 502 633-5600. Claudia Sanders, the wife of Colonel Harland Sanders, believed in gracious hospitality and generous portions in her restaurant. When Tommy and Cherry Settle rebuilt the new Dinner House, their objective was to keep the great Kentucky legend of Claudia Sanders Dinner House alive and well. The present Dinner House has been rebuilt on the same site, but it has been enlarged to 24,000 square feet and can sit up to 700 hungry guests at a time. Guests arriving at Claudia Sanders enter an Italian porcelain tiled foyer with a grand antebellum styled staircase. To the right is the receptionist area and a gift shop. Guests will enjoy their dining experience in one of four elegantly decorated dining room: The Thoroughbred Room, The Saddlebred Room, The Kentucky Room, and The Colonel's Quarters. Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, 1565 Mount Eden Rd (I-64 at KY 53), ☏ +1 502 633-9945. Down home cooking with a country atmosphere. Gift shop on the premises. Fiesta Mexicana, 1815 Midland Trail, ☏ +1 502-437-2140. Ken-Tex Bar-B-Q, 1163 Mount Eden Rd, ☏ +1 502 633-2463. Marimba Mexican Restaurant, 2059 Midland Trail, +1 502 647-1990. McKinley's Cafe, 615 Main St, ☏ +1 502 647-1665.

Shelby County is officially classified by the state's Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control as "moist", meaning that the county as a whole is "dry" (not allowing alcohol sales) but contains a "wet" city where full retail sales, both packaged and by the drink, are allowed. The city of Shelbyville is wet. The surrounding county is 'moist" in a different sense, prohibiting package sales but allowing sales by the drink in larger restaurants (seating at least 100). Sixth & Main Coffeehouse Inc, 547 Main St, ☏ +1 502 647-7751.

Best Western Shelbyville Lodge, 115 Isaac Shelby Dr (I-64 Exit 32B), ☏ +1 502 633-4400. 79 rooms, outdoor pool, free high-speed internet and cable. Econo Lodge, 100 Howard Dr. (I-64 Exit 32B), ☏ +1 502 633-5771. 40 rooms. Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites, 110 Club House Dr (I-64 Exit 35), ☏ +1 502 647-0109. 81 rooms. Comfort Inn and Suites, 251 Breighton Circle, ☏ +1 502 633-9933. Chandler Ridge, 9771 Vigo Rd., ☏ +1 502 220-0141. Walnut Grove, 5970 Mt. Eden Road, Hwy. 53, ☏ +1 502 750-0955. Yellow Carriage House Bed & Breakfast, 4876 Shelbyville Rd., Simpsonville, ☏ +1 502 722-2039, toll-free: +1-877-274-8378. Guist Creek Lake Campground, 11990 Boat Dock Rd, ☏ +1 502 647-5359. The campground is available from March 1st through November for primitive or pull-through RV camping. All pull-through sites have water and electric hook-ups. There is a shower house with restrooms and a dumping station.

Interstate 64 crosses Shelby County from west to east, linking Shelbyville with Louisville and, eventually, St. Louis to the west. Eastbound traffic will go to Lexington and on to West Virginia and Virginia Beach. Exits along I-64 in Shelby County are Exit 28 (KY 1848, Veechdale Rd) at Simpsonville, Exit 32 (KY 55, Taylorsville-Shelbyville) and Exit 35 (KY 53) both at Shelbyville and Exit 43 (KY 395, Waddy-Petona). Louisville International Airport offers numerous flights to cities around the country. Capitol City Airport in Frankfort handles small aircraft.

Travel tips adapted from Shelbyville (Kentucky) on Wikivoyage, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Content summarized; visit the source for the full article. See our methodology for how we use it.

Trips to Shelbyville, KY

Drives from Shelbyville, KY in your inbox

Monthly note with new routes, weekend drive ideas, and seasonal picks for KY. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.

Browse more KY road trips or choose a route from Shelbyville, KY above.